Ashes of the Dawn
by Eye of Passion
Summary: Dawn of Fanelia was left with nothing after the murder of her family and destruction of her home. Now, in the Dragonslayers, she has a change to avenge their deaths, but will her feelings for a certain Dragonslayer get in the way?
1. The Next Step

Chapter 1: The Next Step

A/N: So this is actually a reposting of this story, because I wasn't as fond of it. But this time I'm actually going to write and (shocker) update it rather more frequently than never. And now... the story!

Dawn strolled through the woods, humming a tune to a song she had heard earlier that day. The cold flushed in her cheeks and leaves of all colors swirled around her in the strong wind. The dirt path was soft underneath her bare feet, the soil soothing and cooling her soles. Sun splashed through the breaks in the canopy of trees, warming her slightly as she walked. This was heaven. She was sure of it. There could not be any place on Gaea more beautiful than this, than the forest of Fanelia.

Dawn closed her eyes and took a deep breath of the fresh air. She coughed and sputtered as smoke filled her nose and her lungs. What was wrong here? Her eyes snapped open to a world of crimson flame. The forest was engulfed in fire, smoke rising from the wood. The sun was now completely gone and it felt like night. The darkness and flames were closing in around her as she stood, too terrified to move. It felt like an age had passed when her senses returned and she tried to get out, striving desperately to make her way through the flames.

There was so much noise. Tree trunks splintering and falling over the ground, flames crackling and roaring their victory in the crisp air. It ran through her head, back and forth and back and forth, like a twisted nursery rhyme, until she thought she would go mad.

But there was another sound that could be heard above all the others. Over the chaos there could be heard cackling, a cold, bloodthirsty laugh echoing from all directions.

Why wouldn't it stop? Why wouldn't it leave her alone? She had done nothing to deserve this fiery end. She looked behind her as an even louder sound split the air, and screamed as the flaming remains of the tree came crashing toward her.

Dawn bolted up from the cot, taking deep gulps of fresh air. She was shaking frantically under her thin blanket, clutching the covers in an attempt to rid herself of the dream. This was the three hundred and sixty-ninth night that she had dreamt this dream. And it had been much like the reality.

Shaking her head, she threw off the covers and leapt out of bed; it was time for her to do her personal training anyway. She had been in the army barracks for nine months now, working harder than she ever had in her entire life. But it was to a purpose. A purpose that she more than believed in. She would not leave her family's death unavenged. The day that had changed her life forever had been one year ago, and the details of it were still a vivid nightmare in her mind's eye.

She sat down and stretched thoroughly after dressing herself, and picked up her sword. She smiled with grim satisfaction as the steel blade sliced through the air, glinting in the rays of sun that slipped through the cracks in the wall. She danced with an invisible foe, clashing with the absent sword of her enemy. All the while in her imagination she searched for an opening, until it came.

Dawn thrust her sword into the open air, wishing it to be armor and flesh. Until she had killed him, she would never be free of that mocking laugh.

The breakfast bell rang soon after all the other soldiers were awake, and masses of men spilled into the mess hall. She sat in her usual spot by herself, aware of the whispers that always surrounded her. She was Dominic here to all who knew her, but she was also the boy that did not speak. She had not spoken to anyone since the night she had first arrived, half-starved in the garb of a beggar, asking for a place in the Asturian army.

Dawn had never asked for anything, had never complained, and had never backed down from a fight. But even in those few fights that she had fought she was silent. There was no point in words when there was no reason to speak. But today was different. Today she would end that long silence by asking permission to train as a Dragonslayer. She was certain she could do it. She was the best out of all of them at everything. Her archery skills were more than passable, her sword fighting surpassed even her masters' skills, and her battles in a guymelef were legendary. This would be the next step.

She leaned over to the person who had just sat next to her, and, pitching her voice low like the man she was supposed to be, spoke to him.

"Excuse me? Could you please pass the bread?" The man stared at her for a minute, as if she were some alien creature. Then he stood up and yelled to all that would listen.

"Hey boys, Dom here's decided to talk!" All faces turned to him, and then to "Dom." "Come on, Dom, say somethin' else!"

"Um, hello." Dawn spoke loud and clear, making sure every ear in the room caught what she said. Her voice had always had an odd effect on people; once people heard her speak, they held on to her every word as if it were the last thing substantial in their lives. "Gentlemen, what would you say if one of us were to try for the position of a Dragonslayer?"

What silence there was disappeared in a second. Whispers flew around the room in confusion, but Dawn held up her hand and once again there was silence. She was enjoying this, the confusion that she could cause by the mere working of her vocal cords.

"I intend to train as a Dragonslayer, if permission is granted me by my superiors." She had thrown it out into the open, knowing well that it would get back to the General through one of his servants. "Now if you will excuse me, I believe that our breakfast time is over and it is time for our training to begin."

Just as Dawn had predicted, word had been passed to the General of her intentions by nightfall. And also as she had known, she was summoned to his quarters to speak of it.

Dawn walked into the General's quarters with her head held high. There was no reason not to. It wasn't as if she had any reason to fear his orders. Indeed she was quite confident that she knew what his orders would be. He would not let her immense talent go to waste with ordinary training. If he had any sense about him, he would comply with her request without hesitation.

The room that she entered now was sparsely furnished, with enormous windows stretching nearly to the ceiling. Through them the last remnants of the setting sun were visible, and Dawn could not look at them for long they were so bright. A desk sat near one wall facing the door, with piles of papers adorning its

surface. Behind these papers sat the General Filaes of Austuria, and he was surveying her with curiosity with a slight underlying of suspicion.

"I have received word that you intend to ask my permission to train as a Dragonslayer, Dominic of Fanelia. Is this so?" His voice was pitched low and should have been inaudible, but Dawn had no trouble hearing him or his words.

"Yes, Sir. Would you grant me that permission?" Dawn swallowed, trying to moisten her suddenly dry throat.

"Are you sure that you wish to do this? The road of a Dragonslayer is hard and long. Very long. The training is at least ten times more advanced than that of ours, and their leader is... very hard on newcomers. If it gives you an idea of how many make it into the Dragonslayers, there are only fifteen." Filaes looked at her sharply as if silently asking her to stay, but he remained quiet.

"I do want to do this. That is why I joined the army. I know I am good enough to get in and train. If you will grant me that permission, I am sure that I will make you proud."

Dawn prayed silently as Filaes sat and pondered. He could let this young boy go and become one of them and give Dom his dream, or he could save him but take the dream away. He knew that one did not simply give up one's life for the infamous General Albotou, but one's self as well.

"You have my permission to train as a Dragonslayer. But if you ever feel that at one point you cannot make it in their world, then come back to ours. We could use you soon, for—" he hesitated— " I fear a storm is coming. You are dismissed, young Dominic of Fanelia."

Dawn could barely contain her excitement as she bowed and swiftly exited the room. She was on her way. She would have to train twice as hard though if the training program was as hard as Filaes said it was. But she had proved to herself and others that she could work hard many times before, and she was willing to do it again. For her own sake. For her family's sake.

A/N: So, you like so far? Because it's going to keep going and I would be very disappointed if you didn't. Review for me, if you please. That would be lovely and I will update soon!


	2. General

Chapter 2: General

A/N: More of this. Yay! Please oh please read and review. This is only the second fanfiction I've written so it would be fantastically amazing if you would review for me. Now: the story.

Dawn stepped from the transport ship onto the cold floor of the Vione, the sole of her boot echoing. She shivered; the air in here was even colder than it had been outside. The walls practically radiated male dominance and power, and secrets crowded the air with an insistence that she couldn't ignore. She looked warily around her, though what she was searching for she did not know. Something was wrong about this place, like there were people, or perhaps not people, that were not supposed to be there.

Dawn's fear left her as a boy about her age walked up to her with a warm smile and held out his hand. He was slightly taller than her, with a messy head of dirty blond hair and turquoise eyes as deep as the sea. All together he was quite good looking, and Dawn had to work to keep a blush from her cheeks.

"I'm Gatti, the second-in-command, and I will be showing you to your temporary quarters." She shook his hand, noting the calluses and warmth as it enveloped her own.

"Temporary?" Dawn said, raising an eyebrow in question.

"There are only fifteen of us even after several years." Gatti answered matter-of-factly. "It is a difficult life that not many lead. Of course, if you stay they will be your permanent quarters, but if not..." he trailed off. "But then again... you don't seem like the rest of them. You seem... different somehow." His eyes left her face to roam over her body and she wondered if he guessed, or knew. Admittedly her body was not the typical shape of a man, but she had thought that she had hid it rather well. And although her face looked very feminine, with a nose rather too pert to be masculine, and full lips too pink for a man, some men were quite girlish at seventeen.

"Different?" she asked innocently, managing to find her voice again.

"Much more determined, much more skilled, than others who have trained as one of us." His steady turquoise eyes held hers as he said this, and she tried to look more masculine without actually doing anything. "If you'll follow me, please. General Dilandau hates it when we're late."

Gatti was deep in thought as he led "Dominic" down the corridor to his rooms. There was something very odd about this young man, something that he was certain the General would see right through. The way his clothes fit, the soft pout of the lips, the way Gatti found himself attracted to him... He nearly laughed at himself at what he was suggesting. He couldn't be a she. There were birth records, records of his past, even a testament from his previous general to what an amazing soldier HE was. Admittedly, records could be falsified, and so could his birth, and the general could have been fooled as well, but it was too ridiculous. Gatti shook it firmly from his mind and continued to lead her down the long hallway.

Dawn nodded and followed him down a long passage lined with closed doors. Gatti opened one with a quick touch of his deft fingers to the keypad, and she stepped into the room ahead of him. It wasn't much, though it was more elegant than her last residence, but it was enough to live in. A privy stood with a screen in front of it at one corner of the room, and a desk against the opposite wall. Nestled up against the third wall was a bunk bed.

Dawn turned to Gatti and inquired as casually as possible, "Do you know who I'm bunking with?"

"Yes," he replied without emotion. "Me."

Dawn nearly choked on the air she was breathing and quickly turned back to the room, biting her lip as her cheeks turned red. She had thought this through, she wasn't an idiot, but she hadn't thought that the Dragonslayer she would be bunking with would be so damn intelligent.

"Where do we train?" she asked quickly, changing the subject as rapidly as she could to something she was familiar with.

"Actually our training with weaponry begins in three minutes. Dilandau is coming in for his inspection of the knew trainee, and as you are the new trainee, it would be prudent of you to be there."

Dawn nodded and tried to shake her uneasiness at the thought of being "looked over" by the most ruthless and bloodthirsty boy in history. She knew she was good, knew it like she knew her name, and when it came to ordinary people she had ultimate self confidence, but she wasn't sure that she was ready to face the reality of the decision that she had made.

Gatti guided her down the corridor to the training room, keeping his own thoughts on the subject to himself. If Dilandau didn't think that the trainees were fit to be Dragonslayers, even on first sight, he would send them back to whatever army they came from. And, though he knew nothing about this small-statured boy, he knew that he'd like to.

Dawn walked into the training room and let out an involuntary gasp. It was huge. The walls were padded from the floor to the ceiling, with windows to the world outside set high in the ceiling. Swords, axes, spears, staves, and knives of all shapes and sizes lined one wall, and against the other three there were weight lifting machines scattered around the borders.

Everything stopped as the new trainee entered the room, and every head turned in Dawn's direction. To all in the room, this trainee didn't look to be any better than the others that had been thrown out, but as they knew, looks could be deceiving. He was short for a man, with too slim a build to be of any use against a larger opponent. The only thing that Dilandau might notice to the boy's benefit was the set of his jaw, and the pain and determination in his eyes. That might give him a place here.

"Hello, everyone. This is Dominic of Asturia and he has come to train with us." Gatti spoke softly to the room, and his smooth voice carried to every corner. The other Dragonslayers were silent, sizing up the man without a sound.

The doors were flung open behind her, and she turned to face the man entering the room. Her first thought was that he was impossibly beautiful, in the way a panther is beautiful when it is ready to kill. His tousled platinum hair was a marvelous contrast for his crimson eyes. The torches in the brackets on the walls provided the illusion of flames dancing in his eyes and Dawn remembered that day. That horrible day.

It was too bad that such beauty would be destroyed.

"So this is the new trainee." Dilandau spoke quietly, but his voice could be heard in every corner of the room. His gaze traveled over the boy that stood before him with his usual cold amusement, until he caught the young man's eyes. Deep grey orbs stared back at him with such an anguish reflected in them that Dilandau was slightly taken aback. He noticed with satisfaction the blatant hatred in the trainee's eyes. That pleased Dilandau. This boy might have a chance after all.

"What is your name, boy?" he asked with authority. He knew the answer, but he wanted to see how he was answered.

"Dominic of Austuria, Sir." Dawn replied as naturally as possible. Though she had lived with this false identity for a long time now, she doubted that she would ever get used to it.

"You will address me as Lord Dilandau while you are here, nothing else. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Lord Dilandau."

Dilandau walked around Dawn several times, surveying this seemingly worthy boy. The hatred was promising, but he didn't want to waste more months of training another worthless idiot simply because he had at first looked promising. A sadistic smirk tugged at his lips and an idea formed in his mind.

"Tell me, Dominic." Dilandau said quietly, grinning. "Do you spar well?"

Dawn wondered how to answer such an open challenge to her pride. She could say yes and be immediately labeled a showoff, or she could say no and be considered a weakling. The decisions in life.

"I have been told so, Sir." she answered finally. She did not like the smile that was spread across his face, nor the childish delight in his eyes when he looked at the weapons on the wall.

Dilandau stalked to the middle of the room, standing in the center of a large square mat. He turned around and smiled broadly at Dawn.

"Shall we test your skills, if you will?"

Dawn's mouth went dry when she realized what he was suggesting. A bout with the teenager who would be more than willing to cut her throat for a little fun. But it was a challenge that she rarely received. She had been easily bored by all the others in the army and had scarcely an opportunity to test her full abilities. What the hell?

"I accept your challenge." she said calmly, and the room went even quieter than before. Dawn could hear her heart pounding; her body tingled with adrenaline.

Dilandau slowly drew his sword from his scabbard, freeing it from its restraints. The hiss of steel brought the smile back to his lips. He hefted the broadsword easily in his hands, twirling it idly in one hand as he waited for Dominic to remove his own weapon from its sheath.

Dawn pulled out her sword, smiling a little as she did so. She knew what an impressive weapon she held in her hands, wielding its silver magnificence with confidence and pride. The hilt was studded with tiny jewels, flakes of gold and diamond, and engravings ran up its curved blade. She did not know what the words meant, but they spoke to her, had spoken to her since the day she had found it, three years ago.

She had been only fourteen then, a child with no worries about the rest of the world. And she had snuck into her sword master's armory. She had thought it would be fun, to look at the beautiful array of swords and axes that decorated the stone walls. She had walked silently through the room, careful not to make even a whisper of sound. And through the sounds of silence she had heard it, the singing of the sword. It was like a tiny, silver-voiced fairy, singing her ethereal tones from a darkened corner.

Dawn had stepped cautiously toward it, drawn by the haunting music emanating from the dark corner. She knew that she should go, that she had stayed for far too long in any case; the master might return soon. But she could not leave that music, or the sword that sang it. When she had finally grasped its hilt, it was like a power too great for her had invaded her body, trying to find a vessel for its strength. She had been chosen, she guessed, to carry this sword, and that was what she would do. Until she died or until it was taken from her.

And now that she though about it, that death could very well be right now. If Dilandau chose to, there was no reason why he couldn't slit her throat. There was no way that she would beat him in this fight; he knew that as well as she did. All she had to do was last long enough. And she could last for a long time.

"On guard," the General whispered, a bloodthirsty glint in his eyes that Dawn couldn't ignore. She swallowed the sudden lump in her throat, assuming the guard position, as ready as she would ever be.

They circled each other slowly, not taking their eyes off one another. Dawn avoided his eyes, knowing that the enemy could easily use them to throw her off guard. He was waiting for an attack, waiting for her to get impatient and attack first. He was counting on her impatience, and not without reason.

She rolled her eyes; she was getting very tired of waiting. She darted in for an attack, hoping that it

would throw him off guard, but her hopes were doused as he parried and struck just as quickly, if not faster. His agility was impressive, though he admittedly was not a big man, and his strength matched his speed in a deadly combination.

It was a dance of parries and attacks, of strikes and passes. They wove in and out in a tapestry of battle, never making a pattern to weave by, but creating a story nonetheless. The Dragonslayers watched with interest, silent and still spectators.

Dawn started to tire. She hadn't been in a fight like this for a while now, and fighting with a friend is much different than fighting for your life. She wanted desperately to end it now, to kill the General and fulfill her revenge, but she knew that now she did not have a chance. All she hoped was that he would hold off on killing her long enough to give her one.

Dilandau saw his opening in her moment of distraction. His sword slipped through her guard and her blade went flying across the room. Cursing herself for her stupidity she ducked to avoid the swinging blade. He was cornering her, and there was nothing she could do about it. Roughly, he pushed her against the wall and held the edge of his blade to her throat.

The Dragonslayers saw her expected defeat with a little bit of disappointment, but to Dawn it was a victory. She had lasted for over fifteen minutes with the fiercest General of all time.

Dilandau pressed his blade into her throat harder at the victorious look in her eyes. What was the damn boy looking so smug about? He had just won, not that he had expected any different outcome. Roughly he pushed away from her, turning and sheathing his sword.

"You'll do." Those were the only two words that came out of his mouth, but to Dawn, they were his death wish.

A/N: So... what do you think? Tell me, pretty please. :)


	3. Roommate

Chapter 3: Room Mate

A/N: Next chapter. Please review for me, it would be fantastically fantastic if you would. It makes me so sad when my story has no review. :(

Dawn trudged back to her quarters, weary to the bone after her bout with Dilandau. Every muscle in her body seemed to be screaming at her to lie down on something soft, which she had no problem with doing since she intended to do just that. She trained hard; it wasn't that she wasn't strong enough. It was partially due to the fact that she hadn't really been fighting that hard during her months in the army. It had all been against friends. And when it came to a real battle, none of her fights ever lasted over three minutes.

She pushed through the door and slowly climbed to the top bunk, silently apologizing to her protesting muscles. There was no way in hell she would let

Gatti get the top. The bed wasn't the most comfortable she'd slept on, but it felt like heaven on earth. She closed her eyes and closed out her surroundings.

Her mind was tired too, presenting itself with maddening thoughts that were swift destroying her common sense. She had just come up against her worst enemy, the man who had killed her family. She had been given opportunity this day to kill him, not by their duel, but by his words confirming her place here. It was a new beginning, one that she was more than ready to start.

Dawn jumped as she heard the door open and bolted up, hitting her head on the low ceiling.

Gatti laughed as she let out a string of curses, his mirth granting him a seething glare from his room mate. It was going to be very interesting finally having someone else with him in the room, and quite entertaining if this moment was anything to go by. Though hopefully Dominic wouldn't end up hitting his head like that all the time; it would do quite a bit of damage in the long run.

After a moment the throbbing in her head stopped, and Dawn gave Gatti a weary smile. Gatti. What a pretty name, she thought, looking him over as he stripped off his armor.

"Um... thank you?" Dawn blinked at him in surprise, until she realized she had voiced her thoughts aloud. For being a boy, I'm sure using some funny adjectives, she scolded herself, determined to master her disobedient mouth. He began removing the rest of his things, peeling the snug undershirt off and flinging it on the bed.

Gatti looked up at Dominic, startled by the look on the boy's face. Had this boy not lived with a room mate ever before? He had only taken off his shirt and Dominic's face had turned beet red. Of course, if his previous suspicion were right... He shook his head. He was being an idiot again. He was not a she. No way in hell. Dilandau would have seen straight through it.

Dawn was aware of the heat flooding her cheeks, and tried to suppress the feelings that had just invaded her senses. She had seen men change before; she had lived in the army barracks after all. But never one that had been so... beautifully formed. She shook off the thoughts, reminding herself that he thought she was a boy, "Dominic" as she had so wittingly named herself.

He is quite good-looking, she realized as he finished taking off clothes. He had left his boxers on, much to her relief; she wasn't sure how she would have dealt with a gorgeous naked boy in the same room with her. Actually, she didn't have any doubt as to how she deal with the gorgeous naked boy in the same room with her... but he isn't naked and that isn't an option, she reminded herself sternly. Nonetheless, her eyes drank in the hard lines of his abs and chest and the muscles in his calves that she could see ripple as he stretched.

"What, do you sleep in your armor or something?" Gatti asked, sarcasm practically dripping from his voice. All Dominic had done was sit there, staring at him. It was kind of unnerving. Maybe Dominic was a he, just a not very straight he...

"Um, no." Dawn winced at the sound of her voice. It sounded so small and squeaky, not like her at all. She slowly unbuckled her armor, removing the smallest pieces first. It wasn't as if she were wearing something revealing underneath. It was the undershirt and shorts she had put on that morning. The only problem being that it was a very see-through undershirt. He might see her bindings. She wasn't exactly a small woman in the chest area though she wasn't exactly breaking any records, and it caused her a rather significant amount of pain to bind them every morning. She pulled off her armor and let it drop unceremoniously to the floor.

Gatti gave her a look and picked it up, draping it over the back of the chair. Would he ever understand Dominic? This boy didn't seem like he should have been named Dominic. He was too... beautiful. As in boyish beautiful. Not feminine beautiful, though now that he thought about it...

Dawn slipped under the covers, pulling off her shirt and ripping viscously at the bindings on her chest. She smiled as they finally came off; it felt so good to be free and painless. She left the shirt off, figuring that as long as Gatti didn't try to wake her up too enthusiastically, she'd be fine. She'd probably wake up before him anyway. She closed her eyes after her long day, gently rubbing her sore arms, and let sleep envelope her.

Dawn ran back to the village as fast as she could, knowing she had to save her family. The forest had burned around her, but maybe they hadn't reached the city yet. Her lungs burned from their task, but she knew that she had to keep running. She stumbled, catching her foot on a tree root as she cleared the last few trees of the forest. Her knee stung, but she rose and kept running. She decided to count the steps, knowing that would take her mind off of the soreness in her legs. She had just finished a training session this morning with her sword, and she was aching all over. 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10... She gave up as she rounded the last corner into the city.

Dawn froze. The city was gone, nothing but burning buildings and flaming wreckage in its place. Fanelia was a living torch, burning in its death throes. Slowly she walked into her once great city, picking her way among the fallen bodies, blanching at the sight of them. There was so much blood. Limbs were strewn everywhere, severed throats still gushed blood, hands groped at her, their owner's mouths begging for release. She stopped by a building and collapsed in dry heaves, sobbing. She had to find her family.

Dawn walked like a machine, her feet taking her slowly to her destination, until she reached her house. It was ash; everything was on the ground, ash-covered and blistered from the heat, a grim sample of what the burning had been like. And among the fallen timbers of her house lay three figures.

Dawn didn't even go over to them, for even from here she could see they had been burned to death, their skin crisp and black and breaking as bones peaked through. She sank to her knees, her eyes dry. She could cry for the people she did not know, but for them, for her family, somehow no tears came to her eyes. They were her family. They had raised her, loved her, no matter how annoying they could be at times. None of them had deserved such early deaths, especially not her little sister.

It had been him. That man who had laughed as he burned the forest, she was certain of it. Only he would be heartless enough to do this to her family. She could still hear his laugh, echoing through her brain to torture the fragile recesses of her mind.

"I will kill you." she whispered to the remnants of her home, "I will hunt you down to the ends of the earth and I will rejoice as my blade takes your life." Now she was breaking down, keening wails splitting the silence as tears streamed down her face. "You bastard! You killed them, you killed them all! No!"

"NO!" Gatti snapped awake, the shout he had heard beating away the sleepiness. What the hell had that been? Sobs reached his ears, heartbreaking sounds of sadness through the dark. He sat up and silently slid out of bed, looking around to see where the sounds came from.

He could vaguely see the outline of Dominic, still lying down in his bed, but he was moving. And crying, sobbing like his heart had been wrenched out of his chest. Slowly Gatti climbed up onto the boy's bed, striking a match so he could see. The new trainee had his eyes shut tight, but tears leaked through nonetheless. He was moving, like he was struggling under invisible bonds. Or shaking with heart wrenching sobs. Gatti thought. Gently he shook him, trying to urge him out of whatever nightmare he was experiencing. But Dominic wouldn't wake. He shook harder, persistently, and grey eyes snapped open.

Dawn bolted up, slamming her forehead into Gatti's. She groaned and fell back on the pillows, clutching the now-bruised portion of her head. He had woken her up, she guessed, for that was the only other reason she could think of that he was in her bed. In her bed? her mind repeated dimly, uncomprehending. "Shit." she cursed softly, panicking in the face of him discovering her identity. Swiftly she pulled the covers up to her chin and sat up.

"Are you okay?" Gatti whispered, ignoring the pain in his forehead. Dominic had a really hard skull. He wasn't responding, just pulling the covers farther up, and Gatti spoke again. "Dominic?"

"Call me Dom." was the grumpy reply. Gatti opened his mouth to say something more, but he was rudely cut off by, "I'm fine. It was just a nightmare." He nodded and went back to his bed, leaving Dawn to shut her eyes tightly and sigh. God, how I wish it were.

Dawn woke up the next morning and peered over the edge of the bed to make sure Gatti was still sleeping. She pulled out fresh binding, the only thing she had brought with her other than a brush, and began the most uncomfortable process of binding her chest. When she was through, she pulled on her undershirt and climbed out of bed.

Silently she pulled her sword out of its sheath and began her morning practice. She went through her usual routine, and remembering something that her teacher had always said. Close your eyes and you will never make a false move. Only during practice of course, for if you close your eyes during battle you are as good as dead. Her moves were sharper this way, more precise as her blade sliced through the air, and she relished the feeling of her bare feet on the cold floor, the feel of her magnificent hilt in her palms, and the hiss of steel against air.

Gatti's eyes fluttered open earlier than usual, his ears caught by the familiar sound of steel. It was Dom, practicing early with his beautiful sword. He kept his eyes half-closed so that the boy wouldn't stop, for it was fascinating to watch. Dom had his eyes closed, relying only on his muscles for the moves and precision. But Gatti had a sinking suspicion that Dom had forgotten about the lack of space as the sharp blade inched closer and closer to his bed. He eased his own sword out of its sheath, just in case it was needed.

Dawn didn't notice the sound of a sword being drawn as she continued her routine, swinging her sword around in a complex attack. She let out a small shriek as the clang of steel invaded the silence, and her eyes snapped open to see Gatti barely holding her sharp sword off his bare throat.

"Oh shit! I'm sorry! Are you okay? I didn't slice off an arm or anything did I?" Dawn was panicking, trying to make sure this incredibly gorgeous boy wasn't injured in any major way without actually touching him.

"No, my arms and limbs in general are still intact," Gatti said, laughing at how worried Dom had gotten. Hadn't he killed someone before? Sure, with a friend, it was different, but the extreme panick attack? That was just... girly.

Dawn glared at him venemously as he continued to laugh at her. It wasn't unnatural or anything to worry about your new roommate. A roommate that she's rather not skewer on her extravagant sword. Or maybe it was a guy thing to almost kill your new friend and not have any reaction. God, men were weird.

It was odd, here in the Vione. Life wasn't as unusual as Dawn had thought it would be. She made it through her training without being smacked by Dilandau which was quite a record for new trainees, and ate a healthy amount of food. In truth it was no different than when she had trained in the army of Asturia, though admittedly much more rigorous.

That night, after making absolutely sure Gatti was asleep, Dawn crept out of their room and made her way silently down the long hallway. She needed a shower desperately, and just because she was female and couldn't shower when all the other slayers did, that did not mean that she would go without getting clean.

She wore only a large night shirt, which she had found stuffed in a closet full of spare clothes, and her long legs stuck out almost immodestly from underneath it. It would certainly be most embarrassing for any of the men to come down here and find out how... unmanly her legs were. Not to mention the rest of her.

She made it to the showers without encountering anybody and eased open the door, sliding in and turning on the light. There was a row of showers with curtains separating them at one end of the room, and Dawn was struck by how interesting it would be if she did shower with her fellow Dragonslayers. Bet they would like that, she thought dryly, knowing exactly what would be going through the minds of horny, teenaged guys in the presence of a wet, naked woman.

The hot water on her skin was heaven as she turned the knob on the nearest shower. She had chosen this one because it was the nearest to a hiding place if anybody decided to... interrupt her. The water beat down on her back as she turned around, rinsing off the grit and sweat that had developed on her soft skin in the last day.

Training was officially torture. Though she would never admit it, even to herself, it was pretty much hell. In a twisted and rather masochistic way she enjoyed pushing herself to the limit and beyond, the pain that wracked every muscle in her body afterwards, and the screaming of her brain to stop. But in a not so twisted way, it just sucked.

Dawn got out of the shower slowly, her body lethargic because of the hot water. It was amazing they had so much hot water up here. She wasn't sure how long she had been in the shower, but it had to have been a while. She was getting sleepy, and her eyelids drooped as she pulled the towel around her waist and tucked one of the ends in, securing it in place.

She nearly screamed as the door opened to the room and someone entered.

It took all her willpower not to turn around to see who it was, for she was only wearing the towel slung loosely around her hips. She would have pulled it up if not for the fact that it was sadly lacking in material. How do they exist with such tiny towels? She thought furiously as her mind desperately searched for ways to get her out of this.

"Hey Dom, what are you doing in here so late?" Gatti asked, thoroughly confused as to why he was here. He had followed a while after hearing him leave the room, but decided not to ask him about it until he had finished showering. What the hell was Dom doing showering at one in the morning?

Dawn kept her back turned to him and let out a string of curses under her breath. She tossed ideas through her head and then replied with the most simple and inconspicuous one: "Showering."

"Well I can see that, but what the hell are you doing showering at this time of night?"

"What time of night?"

"One in the morning. It's late.

"You call this late? Why, this is when the birds start singing in my world!"

"Then your world is extremely twisted. Come on, pull some clothes on and come back. And next time, just shower with the rest of us."

Dawn nearly screamed in frustration at his suggestion. There was no way in hell she was going to ruin all she had worked for the past few months just because of this— this— annoying boy. "That's okay. I prefer to shower at this time, and it's not like it woke anybody else except for you. Speaking of which, that's a good question. What the hell are you doing here?"

Gatti shot a glare at his roommate's back, not answering immediately. Quite a shapely back. he thought, looking at it more closely. Very feminine though, with that soft looking skin and narrowing at the waist... He brutally snapped himself back into the present and cursed himself again. He is not a girl! Get over it!

"I woke up because I heard you leave but I waited until you had finished showering because I figured it would be polite! And seriously, an hour? Who are you?" He hadn't meant to add the last part, but it had come out, so he was basically screwed. Dom still hadn't turned to face him.

Dawn fervently wished he would leave, praying to all the gods that would listen that he just get bored with this and go back to bed. But apparently none of them felt like being merciful and he just stood there; she could feel his eyes boring into her back. He moved a little to her right, and she moved so her back was still to him.

Gatti frowned and moved again, trying to get Dom to look at him. He could at least yell at him face to face. But again his roommate moved so his back was facing him directly.

"Gatti, just go back to our room and I'll be there in a little while, okay?" Dawn said, defeat heavy in her voice. "But I won't stop showering at this hour." she added, still defiant even when she was clad only in a towel at one in the morning.

"Fine! I'm going! Have fun being insane!" Gatti turned and left, shutting the door with a little more force than was necessary.

Dawn rolled her eyes at his annoying behavior. She threw her towel at the door after he had left and mumble into the empty room, "Roommates."

A/N: So how do you like it? This chapter was a little more fluff and a little less substance, but it is quite possible and probably that more substance will come soon.


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